To The One I Love: Just Once More
by Linnea Farhen
Summary: A spirit's search for the one she loves made Mai realized that she was glad she'd loved Naru for once in her life. Naru also realized something surprising. One memorable & passionate kiss did all that... a kiss that subconsciously stayed in his heart...
1. Etched Scars Of Love

**JUST ONCE MORE**

**Author's Note:** Okay… so this is actually my first attempt to write a Ghost Hunt fanfic. I'm not sure how would this story appear to the readers but I hope you still like it. This was originally planned to be a one-shot. But then the story turned out to be longer than planned so I have to divide it into three parts. I've been watching this anime for so many times and I felt like I'll never get tired of doing so. Anyway, don't forget to leave your reviews. This way, I'll know how I will write my future stories. Before I forget, this story will be my first installment of my mini-series entitled "To The One I Love" but it still depends on how this story would turn out to the readers. Anyway, enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ghost Hunt and its characters. Somehow, I could say that the plot belongs to me. So I guess I should still be happy with that.

**Warning:** Characters might not be in their usual selves. In other words, possible OOC.

**Summary: **Death seemed to be the only way to separate two hearts that love each other enough to defy the rules of heaven and earth. But love will always find a way for two separated hearts to reunite… even just for a while. But will it be able to fulfill one secret wish from their hearts?

**.**

**.**

**PART ONE**

**Etched Scars Of Love**

"He's dead… He met an accident on the way to the villa. He never made it to the hospital…"

Mai shook her head in denial upon hearing that news that Lin said. It can't be! It wasn't true! Naru couldn't be dead. Every word that Lin said—those were merely lies. Right? Naru couldn't die. He promised that they would meet again tonight and would never be separated. _Till beyond eternity…_ Naru promised her that. Till beyond eternity, they would be together. So how come he would break it all of a sudden? He couldn't do that.

"Take it back…" Mai mumbled as her tears started to fall. "It's not true, right? He can't die! He promised that he would never leave me. He promised me that I would never be alone again. He said that he'll save me… He'll save me from this hell! How could he possibly break all that?" Then Mai faced Lin rashly, unmindful of the tears continuously falling from her eyes. "Tell me it's not true! That it's just a joke! Please, Lin-san, you have to take it back. Please… I'm begging you… Tell me it's not true…" And those pleadings were soon followed by several sobs.

All the people in that living room were just looking at her. Pity, sympathy, sadness and… regret? Wait, regret? But those emotions were more than enough to convince her that what Lin said was true.

That idiot Naru! He left her. He left her alone and unable to accept the truth. Things weren't supposed to go this way. She and Naru were supposed to be happy together. How would she possibly achieve that happiness now without Naru? How did things end up this way?

Masako approached her and was about to touch her when she just brushed her off. Mai didn't notice the hurt she had inflicted to the woman and now vividly expressed in those eyes. And without facing any of the people in that room, she took off—away from that place… away from her living hell of a family.

Roars of thunder resounded as soon as Mai got out of that house. She was unmindful of the rain continuously falling from the sky—just like her tears. She just ram without a care about direction. Running away from everything—and even from the truth—was the only thing she could care about. Gashed and cuts all over her body were nothing to her. As long as she could fade the overwhelming pain in her heart by running, that was all that mattered to her.

_Naru… Naru, you can't leave me! Please, you have to make me believe that it's not true. You can't leave me like this!_

But no matter how she cried out his name over and over, the truth could never be changed. And it was something she couldn't accept. The truth was completely enough to tear her heart apart.

When she got tired of running, she stopped underneath a large tree. Upon looking up to see what kind of tree it was, her tears incessantly fell once more. It was followed by a loud sob as she leaned her tired body onto the tree. The rain fell harder and harder. Roars of thunder and flashes of lightning resounded throughout the dark gloomy night sky once again, just enough to muffle her outburst from the rest of the world.

_You can't just leave me in this hell again, Naru! Please, tell me it's not true! None of these are true!_

Unfortunately, everything around her now was the reality she knew she could never face heads on. All she did was to cry as the rain fell. Several hours later, the rain stopped. But her tears and the unbearable pain in her heart didn't. It was so cold but it didn't matter to her that much. In fact, it was for the best. She needed the cold to shield her heart—much better if the cold could paralyze it completely—in order for her not to feel any more pain. But she couldn't simply accept all that so easily. She was left by the man she loved—the one she chose to love forever—to face another living hell without him.

How would she be able to move on and act like nothing had ever happened? She never had a life of her own from the start. Naru gave her a life that she wanted to cherish eternally when she met him. And all of a sudden, death took it all away. His death had condemned her to live in hell once again.

Wet and broken, she decided to return to the mansion. But along the way, she started etching words she wanted to say but couldn't speak it out in selected boulders that she had come across. Those boulders were hidden from people's sight so no one would be able to see it aside from her. She etched those words on those boulders using a pointed rock in order for her to deliver the message to those people who could never understand how much she loved Naru. No one in her family—except Masako—understood her feelings for him.

_These words will lead you to me, my love…_ she thought as she etched the final words that would complete her message.

She looked around the place one more time. She mustered a bitter smile when she realized something. The boulders where she etched the five stanzas of her poetic message to those who didn't understand her love for Naru actually led her to the place where she and Naru first met and declared their love for each other. The words she etched on those boulders would somehow lead Naru's soul to her and would allow her to see him again…

At least… just once more…

**.**

**.**

Mai's eyes snapped open and then she sighed mentally. She was having a dream, though she wasn't sure who the dream was referring to. All she knew, it has something to do with their new case.

Four days ago, a client by the name of Mizuno Akira came to SPR's office and asked for their help regarding the Kawazumi mansion's strange phenomena. Akira had the details explained to Naru and after some considerations, he accepted the case.

According to the eldest daughter of the Kawazumi family—now married to the son of the owner of the Mizuno estate—strange noises were coming from several rooms of the mansion. There were sobbing and wailing sounds. Sometimes, there were even walking sounds. One time, the family also heard dripping sounds coming from the back door. When they checked on it, they saw water and mud trails starting there and then going to all of the entrance of each room on the second floor. They could also hear something pointed was scratching the walls.

The family could've ignored all that, but one particular phenomenon had caught the SPR team's attention. Basing on Akira's accounts on the encounter, the sentences _"Lead him to me"_ and _"Don't let me live much longer in this hell house"_ were etched on the walls of a particular room. To be specific, the study room that hasn't been opened for more than eight years. Akira had come to the conclusion that the spirits residing in the mansion wanted to convey something to the family.

And now, it was the team's first night in the Kawazumi mansion. At first, they didn't find anything weird or out of place yet. The mentioned phenomena hadn't been happening upon their arrival. But then how come she had a dream like that? Everyone in the SPR was in that dream—except for Naru. Her dream with all of them in it—she was sure it tells a story. And she could actually feel the pain of loss of the person she represented in that dream.

_It might be a vision,_ she concluded in her thoughts.

In her dream, Naru was her lover. Lin and Monk were her older brothers, Ayako was her older sister, Masako her younger sister and John and Yasuhara were her cousins. In that dream-vision, it appeared that only Masako could understand her pain but she just shrugged her off. And those words that she had etched on the boulders, what could it mean?

"Mai!"

Mai was startled upon hearing that voice. Of course, he knew who it came from. She could hear it even in her dreams since she met the person who had that voice. She looked around to know where it came from. It wasn't a surprise for her to see Naru sitting on a chair placed near her bed. He was reading some notes placed on the clipboard.

_This guy's possibly still working even though it's late at night,_ she thought. But why was Naru sitting near her bed?

Her eyes widened when she saw him leaned a little towards her and allowing his hand to wipe something from her face.

"Why are you crying?" he asked, a little stoic but she could sense his concern. Her heart skipped a beat.

Of course, she could sense that concern. After Naru came back from England three years ago, she had come to know him even more. She might not have come to know a lot about him, at least she could understand his emotions a little better that was lying beneath that cold, stoic and narcissist mask of his.

"It's just a dream," she plainly said before showing a smile to reassure him. But knowing Naru, she knew he wouldn't just let her go with "it's just a dream" answer of hers.

"What about it?"

For a while, she didn't know how to speak. But Naru was asking for it. Heaving a heavy sigh to calm her now erratically beating heart (thanks to Naru's concerned gesture), she told him about her dream, of course, she told him that it might have something to do with their current case.

After that, Naru's face was serious. It was because either he believed her or he thought about… something that was probably related to her dream and the case.

"Naru?"

It caught his attention and he suddenly stood up. "This house and this family might have a secret that resulted to these strange phenomena," he said.

But before she could voice out her concerns, they suddenly heard loud scratching sounds—similar to what Akira had described to them before. It was so loud that the sound actually reached the entire house. Mai and Naru had to cover their ears.

"I think she was trying to say something, Naru!" she said out loud in order for Naru to hear it.

"Yeah, I know that. But where could that sound possibly come from?"

And then, something struck her as the sound abruptly stopped.

"_Please come back to me… Shiro…"_ That was the voice that echoed in her mind.

_Shiro? Could it be that the person represented by Naru in my dream was someone named Shiro?_ Soon after, several banging sounds were heard. Somehow, even though she wasn't at the base and watching the monitors, she knew clearly where the sound was coming from.

"The study room!" she exclaimed. Without a word, she jumped out of her bed and went to the hallway—straight to the direction where the study room was. She didn't even pay attention to Naru calling her. All that mattered to her was to reach the aforementioned place.

To all of their surprise, the door of the study room was opened. As soon as Mai entered, the door abruptly closed, as if the spirit didn't want anyone else but Mai to enter the room.

"Mai!" was all she heard before the door shut itself tight, locking her in that room.

**.**

**.**

**This might be a little simple for my first Ghost Hunt story but I still hope you enjoy it. I'm not exactly someone who likes horror stuff. But that doesn't prevent me from loving this anime and this story, as well. Too bad it was on permanent hiatus for some reason that only the creators know. Anyway, please watch out for the second part of this story. Don't forget to leave your reviews about this. Please!**

**Coming next…**

**Part 2: What Had Kept Them Apart**


	2. What Had Kept Them Apart

**JUST ONCE MORE**

**Author's Note:** I'm not exactly sure how this story will turn up. But here is the second part of the story. This turned out to be longer than the first part so I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Oh yeah! Before I forget, I specifically didn't indicate that the first scene of the first part of the story. I don't know why but that's what came to me. Anyway, don't forget to review this part. I started writing the second installment of "To The One I Love" series so I'll be able to post this much faster (I hope). Enjoy reading!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ghost Hunt and its characters. Somehow, I could say that the plot belongs to me. So I guess I should still be happy with that.

**Warning:** Characters might not be in their usual selves. In other words, possible OOC

**.**

**.**

**PART TWO**

**What Had Kept Them Apart**

Loud knocking at the door and Mai's name being called were seemed to be muffled as each moment passed. But weird enough, Mai didn't seem to care even though the room was dark. She could see a study table with a lamp. The bookshelves were full of books with colorful covers. The curtains weren't drew open. That was when she realized that the study room hasn't really been opened for a long time.

Her eyes wondered around the room. She could feel that the place was definitely lonely. She wouldn't be surprised if she found out that this was the place where the spirit that she represented in her dream died. When she turned around to look at the study table, she was surprised to see that the lamp was lit open. Not only that, a woman with a long brown hair was sitting in front of it. The said woman was writing something on a notebook of some sort. It must be her journal, she thought.

While watching the vision, Mai couldn't help but to shed tears for the woman. She was obviously very lonely and completely broken. The woman was crying while writing on her journal. In that quite far distance that the woman and Mai had between them, she could clearly feel the spirit's pain. The loss of the person she loved the most was completely unbearable. But could Mai do something to console her? Would the spirit be cleansed if she did find out what it wanted? Probably, in a normal sense and situation.

But how the hell would she be able to find Shiro for this spirit? Shiro was dead… right? He must have moved on.

"Please… Allow these words to lead him back to me…" the woman suddenly murmured while crying. Mai still managed to hear it. "Lead Shiro back to me… I want to be with him just once more…"

As soon as those words were uttered, another woman entered the room. Wait a second, entered? No one was at the door of the room. She was sure the others were there.

_Then that means… I'm looking at the vision of the past_, she concluded. So she continued to watch. The other woman who entered the room had a short brown hair. When she looked at her, an image of Masako entered her mind. This woman must have been the person that Masako represented in Mai's dream.

"Mina-neesama, you have to rest. Please…" the short-haired woman said. So Mina was the long-haired woman's name.

"Takako-chan, it doesn't even matter if I rest or not," Mina said sadly to the short-haired woman. "Takako-chan, please promise me one thing."

Takako was beginning to cry but still, she gave a small smile and nodded. "Anything."

"Don't let her forget about me. Let her know how much I love her. And if you could, do whatever it takes for Shiro to come back to this house. He'll be turned into a ghost, I know it. Do what you can to have him go here and let him find these words I wrote just for him. I want to see him… at least just once more… for the sake of Minako…"

"Mina-neesama…" Takako uttered and sobbed on her sister's lap. Mina was brushing her younger sister's hair with her hand. "I promise… I'll bring him back here…"

Bright light surrounded the place as soon as Takako said those words. The next thing Mai knew, she was being pulled away from that place. She wanted to scream but no voice was coming out of her mouth.

"I'll lead him back here… for Minako's sake…" Those words said by Takako were the last that Mai heard before completely faded away and lost consciousness.

**.**

**.**

"Hmm…" Mai moaned and slowly opened her eyes. _Where am I? I remember that I entered the study room and then… I saw a vision. Mina and Takako… Mina's pain and Takako's regret and inability to accept her sister's inevitable fate after losing the man she loved—all of it was shown in that vision. But who's Minako?_

"Mai!"

That voice snapped her out of her musings. When her eyes roamed around, she only saw Naru in that room. _Room? I'm back in my room?_ Wait a minute! What the heck happened? She didn't just lose consciousness in that place, did she?

"Naru? How—"

"When we busted the door open, we found you lying on the floor unconscious. You were crying, too. Did you have a dream again? Does it have to do something with—" But Naru abruptly stopped from talking when Mai spoke.

"She wants him back," Mai suddenly said; her tone of voice has a mixture of sadness and pain.

_She's really sensitive to the spirit's feelings, huh?_ Naru thought but didn't show any emotion with regards to it. "Who?"

"The man she loves, Shiro," Mai answered. "Mina wanted to lead Shiro back to her using the words she wrote on those boulders. I just can't figure out who Shiro is and where could those boulders be located. Mina also mentioned someone named Minako."

"Minako?"

Mai nodded. "I think Mina entrusted Minako to her younger sister, Takako. Other than that, I'm not sure who Minako is."

Naru went quiet after she told him that. That silence went for about a minute or so.

"Naru?" she called out when she couldn't bear the silence anymore. Though she was quite used to it, this time she couldn't take it. "Is there something wrong?"

He faced her and she was surprised when she actually stared intently at her. His stare was different that made her scared and… happy at the same time.

"Don't go anywhere," he sternly said and then he left just like that.

"Naru, where are you going?" But he didn't say anything. He just took off without a word. _Don't go anywhere? And where does he expect me to go with this kind of situation?_ She just sighed.

Oh, well. She didn't have much of a choice but to follow orders from her boss, right? But something about that dream bothered her big time. What did that dream means? It was a vision of the past but something about that room definitely had a message that the spirit—either Mina or Takako—was trying to convey to them; possibly to the whole Kawazumi family.

"_Lead him to me… Let these words lead him back to me…"_

Words… She was sure Mina was referring to the words she etched on those boulders. But Mai was also sure Mina was referring to the words written on the journal.

_The journal in my dream… which was probably left by Mina in the study room. I have to tell Naru!_ With that decision, she jumped out of her bed and hurriedly reached the door. But as soon as she opened it, she bumped into someone that made them fall down.

"Ow!" she groaned as she tried to stand up. To her surprise, she saw a good-looking man—probably around John's age—stood up and laid a hand in front of her.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't looking," the chocolate brown-haired man apologetically said. Mai could feel that the man was telling the truth so she accepted his help in making her stand up. "I was actually in a hurry to go outside. I didn't know you were about to come out and I guess I'm really that clumsy. I'm really sorry."

"No, it's okay," Mai insisted. "I wasn't looking in my way either and like you, I'm in a hurry. I lost my focus, I guess." Then she remembered something. "Anyway, I haven't seen you here before. Would it be okay if I ask who you might be?"

"Sure. My name is Kisaragi Takuya, Takako-neesan's brother-in-law. You are?"

Mai was startled and gave a bow. "I'm Taniyama Mai, a part-time investigator at Shibuya Psychic Research or simply put, SPR. You can call me Mai. Why are you here, by the way?"

"We heard about the strange phenomena happening in this house, so Takako-neesan, Minako-chan and I decided to come. Maybe we could be of help."

The names he heard had struck her. "Takako? Minako?"

Though confused, Takuya nodded. "Takako-neesan's my older brother's wife. They got married five years ago. Minako-chan's her niece but unfortunately, the rest of the Kawazumi family didn't know that truth. The family thought that Minako-chan's my older brother's daughter from previous marriage," he said sadly that caught her attention.

"_This house and this family might have a secret that resulted to these strange phenomena."_ Mai remembered Naru's words. Not only did the family kept the truth about Shiro and Mina's death a secret, but also Minako's existence and true heritage.

"Minako-chan was Mina's daughter to Shiro… wasn't she?" she mumbled. The said words didn't make Takuya surprised, though. In fact, his face was serious. It was like he entrusted that secret to her.

Takuya nodded as an answer. "I'm sure Mina wanted her family—and most of all, Shiro—to know that."

"What do you mean by 'most of all'? Shiro's dead, isn't he? I mean, he died almost nine years ago…" Mai's eyes widened at a realization that struck her. "Not unless… Mina's family lied to her…"

"They did," a voice said that has the only ability to make her heart beat faster. She turned around and she saw Naru approaching with a hardbound notebook on his hand.

"Naru… is that…?"

The said man nodded. As soon as he stopped in front of her, he faced Takuya. "And who might you be?"

Mai frowned at the tone of voice that Naru used. Was it her or she had this feeling that he was irritated and… annoyed? _That's impossible! Why would he? Takuya-san only helped me. That's just it._

"Ah, my name's Kisaragi Takuya. I'm Takako-neesan's brother-in-law." And then Takuya's face went solemn. "It seems that you found out the truth, huh?"

"The truth? You mean about Minako-chan and Shiro?" Mai asked.

Naru sighed before speaking. "I forced the eldest brother to tell us the truth when I told them that Mina was getting her revenge by causing these phenomena in this house."

_I didn't realize you're also a sadist, Naru,_ Mai thought.

"What exactly happened that time, Naru? Why did they have to create that lie to Mina?"

"The family wasn't exactly delighted by the fact that Mina fell in love with their gardener's son, Kanada Shiro. Despite the family's declaration about their inability to accept the couple's relationship, Mina and Shiro still continued seeing each other in secret. But one night, almost nine years ago, the eldest brother decided to end it. He paid someone to plot a murder that looked like an accident in order to dispose of Shiro. The plan worked… or at least that's what they thought," Naru explained that surprised Mai. But that surprise turned to confusion when she heard the last phrase that Naru said.

"What they thought? You mean Shiro didn't die?" Mai asked in which Naru replied with a nod.

"Shiro survived… at the cost of all his memories. And that also includes his memories about Mina. The family found out but they remained silent about it. They actually felt relieved back then when they realized that Shiro wouldn't disturb Mina anymore since he had no memory of everything at all. But they never realized that Mina kept a part of Shiro inside of her. At the same time, her health started deteriorating."

Mai couldn't help but to cry upon hearing that. Now she completely understood Mai's pain—the pain that the spirit had let her feel through the means of dreams. All Mina wanted was for other people to understand just how much she loved Shiro—to the point where she was willing to defy everything just to be with him for the rest of her life. Takako understood her so much—that was why Mina entrusted her daughter Minako to her sister. But it seemed that Takako wasn't able to bring Shiro back to the house and let him find those words that would lead him back to Mina.

If Shiro was alive, what happened to him?

"How did Mina die?" Mai asked after moments of thinking.

"Childbirth and depression. Because of her deteriorating health due to depression upon losing Shiro, she died just after giving birth to Minako. Mina predicted ahead of time that her baby to Shiro would be a girl," Naru answered. "But if Takako knew that Shiro was alive, why didn't she do anything to fulfill her promise to Mina?"

"She couldn't find Shiro," Takuya replied. "For 6 years, she and my brother tried to find him. It was by accident that Takako-neesan managed to locate him in New York. Shiro was still suffering from retrograde amnesia till that time. But when she let Shiro and Minako-chan meets, that was when it all came back. Minako knew who her real parents were so she was extremely happy that she was able to meet her father, at last. But then, things took a turn for the worst when he discovered that Mina had already died a few months after the accident that took away his memories."

"So he tried to go back here?" Takuya nodded in response to Mai's question. "I wouldn't be surprised if the family didn't allow him to see at least her grave."

"That's because they didn't know where Mina was buried," Naru said.

"Didn't know? You mean—"

"Takako-neesan firmly stood to her decision of keeping it a secret from the rest of the family. Only those who understood Mina more than anyone knew where the grave is," Takuya said. "Besides, Mina trusted Takako-neesan so much. Nee-san knew the pain Mina had been through ever since the entire family did something to separate Shiro from her."

"Does Minako-chan know where Mina was buried?" Takuya nodded and smiled. That relieved Mai. At least, Minako wasn't clueless as to where Mina lies.

"Twice a month, Minako would visit her mother's grave. Takako-neesan would always accompany her. Minako-chan would tell a lot of things in front of the grave and she would even show videos of her. In fact, Minako said she wanted to be a novelist just like her mother and a photographer just like her father one day," Takuya explained.

But something was still off, only Mai couldn't figure out what.

"If Shiro's alive and he was able to meet his daughter, how come he's not here now that strange things are happening?" Mai couldn't help but to ask. She really needed to know every bit of information that had something to do with this case.

"Shiro…" Takuya started sadly. "Shiro died three weeks ago," he said. "His ashes were entrusted to Takako-neesan since it was Shiro's dying will. He wanted Takako-neesan to bury it near Mina's grave and only Nee-san knows it."

Mai and Naru were shocked about the news.

"How did he…?"

"Suicide. He shot himself months after discovering what happened to Mina. Depression was also the key factor why it all got worse. But he was glad that, at the very least, he was able to meet Minako and spend some time with her even just for a short while. Takako-neesan wasn't able to fulfill his dying wish before since a lot of things had been going on. She knew that this is the right time for the two to meet once again and for the whole family to know the truth about Mina and Minako," Takuya explained further.

Mai couldn't say anything more after that. Why did Mina and Shiro have to suffer this way for so long? Were they not really meant to be together? Couldn't anyone do anything for them to be together once again? Mina wanted to be with Shiro—no matter what. How could their fate be this cruel to them?

She couldn't help but to allow her tears to fall upon realizing the hardships Mina and Shiro had to go through even in the afterlife. Their love for each other wasn't even enough to at least bring them back together. Were they fated to be separated forever?

"Mai, are you alright?" Naru asked nonchalantly. He just couldn't voice out his concerns for her right now. They still need to solve the case.

Mai seemed to be startled and faced him. She nodded, followed by a small smile. Then she noticed the journal in his hands.

"Naru, mind if I take a look at that for a minute?" she asked, pointing at the journal.

The man complied and gave the journal to her. _No doubt, this was Mina's journal that I saw in my dream,_ she thought as soon as she took it from him. Without a word, she opened it and scanned the pages. She wasn't sure what she was exactly looking for. But she knew it was there; she just needed to look for it. Her instincts led her to the last page.

_This is it! The words she etched on those boulders!_ Her mind exclaimed as soon as she laid her eyes on certain words that were awfully familiar.

The words etched on the five different and distant boulders were formed in that journal as a poem that contained five stanzas. The formed poem was entitled by Mina as _"Just Once More"_ and there was a message written before the title of the poem.

_These words will lead you to me, my love…_

Mai silently read the poem. She wasn't exactly good at appreciating Literature. But that poem would lead them to solve the case. They need to bring Mina and Shiro back together so they could be happy. With that resolve in her mind, she took off suddenly with the journal on her hand.

"I'm going out!" she said without looking at the two men she was just talking with a while ago.

"Mai, where are you going? Come back here!" Naru said firmly but she didn't listen. Right now, all that mattered to her was to be able to find Mina.

All Naru could do was to sigh heavily. Mai seemed to have followed her instincts again. Her dream must have something to do with it. "That brat! Heading off somewhere by herself again…" he muttered.

"But aren't you going to do something, Shibuya-san?" Takuya later asked without looking at him.

Though those words were said plainly, Naru could feel something in it. It was as if—

"Aren't you going to do something to protect Mai-san from being used by Mina to kill those who had hurt her before?" Takuya added.

Those words struck him. But what could Takuya possibly mean? Does Mai went out to find Mina and in return, Mina will use her to seek out her revenge? Naru clenched his fist and went off without a word.

_Mai, better not do something foolish. I won't let that spirit use you by any means!_ He couldn't believe how protective he was becoming to Mai ever since he came back from England. But that didn't even matter. He has to protect Mai no matter what it takes. It was enough that Mai was having those terrible dreams and being a constant target by ghosts as a sacrifice or a playmate. But he wouldn't allow any spirit—no matter who/what it was—to use Mai as a puppet in order to deliver their vengeance. Hell would freeze over first before something like that happened.

_Wait for me, Mai!_

**.**

**.**

"Where's Naru-bou?" Monk asked the quiet young man standing in front of Mai's room.

But all the answer the team got from Takuya was a sigh before he turned his back from them and walked away.

"Hey, I'm asking you a question!" Monk yelled but he and the others stopped when they heard Takuya talked.

"Let them be. I'm sure those two… could bring them back together at last. Only those two can do it."

The others looked at the young man quizzically before they saw him leave. For some reasons, they wanted to put their faith to what Takuya just said. Mai and Naru could possibly solve the case and put an end to Mina and Shiro's sufferings.

As they were about to rest and guard the family, Takako said something that turned things to the worst.

"Minako-chan's gone! I can't find her!"

The team was shocked upon hearing that.

"What?" Naru and Mai disappeared all of a sudden and now, the kid that could possibly help Mina and Shiro to move on disappeared, too.

How could things get any worse?

**.**

**.**

**I have to end the chapter here. I just hope the explanation I gave here wasn't confusing. But if you have questions regarding this, you could leave it in your reviews. That would be extremely nice if you did leave them after reading this chapter. Tell me what you think about this chapter. You could give ideas, if you want. I'll place the answers in the author's note on the next chapter (which also happened to be the last one, too). **

**Coming next…**

**PART 3 – Words To Lead Him Back**


	3. Words To Lead Him Back

**JUST ONCE MORE**

**Author's Note:** I'll be having a change of plans regarding this story. I said before that this will be a three chapter story. Well, I expanded it to four. I don't know. It just got into me. Anyway, please leave your comments/reviews about this. Thank you (before I forgot) for those who added this to their favorites and alerts (mostly alerts). Enjoy reading!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ghost Hunt and its characters. Somehow, I could say that the plot belongs to me. So I guess I should still be happy with that.

**Warning:** Characters might not be in their usual selves. In other words, possible OOC

**.**

**.**

**PART THREE**

**Words To Lead Him Back**

Mai continued to run for hours into the forest surrounding the Kawazumi mansion. If she hasn't mistaken, only a quarter of that forest belonged to the Kawazumi family and the rest belonged to the Mizuno family. The forest she had just entered now probably belonged to the former. To be honest, she wasn't sure where she was heading off. But she knew her instincts were leading her somewhere—it was somewhere she needed to go.

She continued running without even stopping until she passed by a weird-looking boulder with some etchings on it. But that alone had stopped her to her tracks almost abruptly.

Boulder? Etching? Could it be that she had passed by the first boulder where Mina wrote the words?

She approached the boulder as fast as she could. When she saw the boulder, something struck her. This boulder was definitely the one in her dreams. The boulder where Mina etched the first stanza of the poem she wrote on the journal. The etchings were pretty deep, so even if almost nine years had passed, the words on that boulder were still there.

Mai began reading the words on it.

_Death is such a destiny no one can defy and counter_

_And ever since then, it was never a laughing matter_

_Is that the reason I felt and unimaginable pain_

_When I lost you one night in the middle of the rain?_

Mai smiled bitterly upon reading it. It was raining when the family told Mina that Shiro died in an accident—when all the while, they lied to her. Mina thought Shiro really did leave her that one rainy night. Her life began turning into a living hell after that. According to Mina, it was hell already that he had been a part of the Kawazumi family. Mai couldn't help but to feel sad about it.

Heaving a heavy sigh, she faced the etchings on the boulder before proceeding to the direction that the etchings faced. She has this feeling that it would lead her to the second boulder—where the second stanza was etched.

And she was right.

_There's no way I wouldn't care about your loss_

'_Cause you've been my life since our paths crossed_

_Loving you felt like I've been to the seventh heaven_

_And I thanked God for giving you to me; making me happy back then_

Love was something that could make you happy, at the very least—and for once in Mai's case, she felt it hard. Sure, Naru didn't reply to her with regards to her confession to him until now. But then it was weird for her not wanting to give it up no matter what. She couldn't let it go. She remained holding on to her feelings for Naru until now.

No matter what it takes, she was glad that she had loved someone like Naru—even though he was the coldest and the most narcissist type of person that she had ever encountered (so far) in her life.

She could definitely—if not, at the very least—relate to Mina's poem. She thanked God for bringing Naru when she needed someone to let her experience what love really was.

She was already panting hard when she found the third boulder.

_I never had the power to defy our fate_

_But how come I just realized it completely too late?_

_I know I couldn't be with you eternally_

_But still, why is my fate so unfair to me?_

People do blame fate on how their lives turned out, or at least that was what Mai thought. She knew eternity wasn't something that could be achieved by a person in a normal sense. But she also knew that love has its ways of defying the laws of eternity. It was the kind of love that Mina felt for Shiro since she was willing to defy the odds just to be with the man she loved forever.

Death could never separate two hearts that love each other so much—so much that it was enough to defy the rules of heaven and earth. But happiness because of love wasn't something that could be achieved so easily. Hardships would have to test it to its limits…

…until they were truly worthy of receiving it.

But would this be the kind of hardship that two people in love could survive in the end? Would they really have to endure this fate to be separated forever?

_Am I really destined to suffer so much pain_

_Because of losing the one I love that was slain?_

_Do I have to cry this hard for you to know_

_That even if it's Death, I never wanted to let you go?_

Mina couldn't let go of Shiro even after she died after giving birth to Minako. She suffered hard enough. She cried hard enough. Being with Shiro till beyond eternity would be the only way to ease her suffering soul and would enable her to move on.

One more boulder and it would all be over. Mai would be able to find Mina. She just wasn't sure if Mina would actually believe her when she tells her that Shiro died.

_Silly me. Of course, she already knew that. But how would I tell that I couldn't bring Shiro to her? _ She tapped her forehead with that thought. She has no time to think about that right now. All that mattered was for her to find Mina.

And the final boulder would lead her to where Mina lies.

She did a few more running before she caught a glimpse of the boulder she was looking for. But compared to the first four boulders, the fifth and final boulder where the words were etched has blood on it. The red substance there might be dried but she knew it was blood.

Mina's blood that underlined the phrase _"just once more."_ It must have been the reason for all the haunting in the Kawazumi mansion, along with Mina's desire to see Shiro once again.

She read the final stanza.

_Now I know I wasn't strong enough for me to defy_

_The cards dealt by fate in which I couldn't simplify_

_But please let me dream about my love before_

_This way, at least I could be with you just once more_

When Mai faced the direction that the etching was facing, she saw a pathway made of flat rocks.

_This rocks will lead me to Mina,_ she thought. Trusting her instincts, she followed the pathway. But then as she slowly approached the end of the pathway, she could feel her vision started to blur. _What's happening? Am I going to faint?_

Just before she completely lose consciousness, she was sure she heard Mina's pleading voice.

"_Let me use your body… even just for a while. Please!"_

She didn't fall to the ground. She remained standing there and soon after, she continued walking. But then she didn't have any control of her own body anymore. She walked until she reached the end of the pathway…

…which happened to be a grave near the cliff!

But instead of walking towards the grave where the name Kawazumi Mina was engraved on its gravestone, Mai was walking towards the cliff which looked really high and dangerous! She continued walking until she reached the edge of the cliff. One more step and would definitely fall.

**.**

**.**

**Though weird, I have to end the chapter here since I need to work on my other stories that are currently pending because of so many stuffs that's needed to be done. If you're the eldest child, you'll know what I'm talking about. What I hate the most: babysitting. I don't have much patience when it comes to talking care of babies but I do adore them.**

**Please review on this one. I'll try updating as soon as I can and this time, it will be the last chapter.**

**Coming next…**

**PART 4 – To Feel You Once Again**


	4. To Feel You Once Again

**JUST ONCE MORE**

**Author's Note:** Finally! This is the last part of the story. So far, this is the longest chapter in this story and thankfully, I'm done. Now I can start on another story. Of course, I've already started writing the second installment of the series "To The One I Love" but sad to say, it's still on-going and written on the paper. But as soon as I'm done writing and editing and revising it, I'll post it here. Just wait for it, okay? Please don't forget to leave your reviews after reading this so that I'll know what to do with the other Ghost Hunt stories that I'll post in the future. Anyway, here's the last part. Enjoy reading!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Ghost Hunt and its characters. Somehow, I could say that the plot belongs to me. So I guess I should still be happy with that.

**Warning:** Characters might not be in their usual selves. In other words, possible OOC

**.**

**.**

**PART FOUR**

**To Feel You Once Again**

"Mama, don't kill Mai-san! Please, I'm begging you!" a child yelled at Mai (now possessed by Mina) that stopped her from her tracks.

Slowly, she turned around. Her face were blank but then her eyes softened upon seeing the child's face. The child has a shoulder-length brown hair tied in a ponytail. The little girl has a pleading look on her eyes as she approached her.

"Minako…" Mai mumbled, only in a different voice. It was the same voice of the woman in her dreams.

"Please, Mama! You don't have to do this. You don't have to kill Mai-san to let them know what you want. She has nothing to do with this. Mai-san has nothing to do with your revenge for the people who took Papa away from you," Minako said teary-eyed. She was sniffling but tried to show a brave front in order to convince her mother (now possessing Mai's body) not to do something rash.

Mai's tears started to fall as soon as Minako spoke those words. "Minako, I'm not going to kill Mai. I just need her to find your father," she said in Mina's voice. "I have to find him now that I figured out that he was really alive."

At that time, Naru arrived at the scene. Surprisingly, he was with Takuya, Lin and Takako.

"Onee-sama, please let her go. Even if you possess her, you won't be able to see Shiro anymore in that form," Takako pleadingly said as she put down a small vase of some sort on the ground. "Shiro commited suicide a few weeks ago because he wanted to be with you."

"Shiro… committed suicide?" Mai shockingly said. Her hand started to quiver as the thought sank into her mind—or to be exact, Mina's mind. "He's still an idiot." And then she started walking backwards unconsciously.

Naru's eyes widened at the thought of Mina trying to kill Mai by letting the latter fall from the cliff. He couldn't allow that to happen.

"Mina, you have to stop!" Takuya yelled. Looked like the stranger beat him to it. "Suicide does seem to be a bad idea and I have to admit that it's idiotic. But Shiro didn't kill himself for no reason. He did it for you. He wanted to be with you like what you have wished for. You have to move on now. So please, you have to let go of Mai-san."

The narcissist faced the lonely-looking Mai. Though he clearly knew that it was Mina's feelings, his heart clenched at the sight of her face like that. Possessed or not, he couldn't afford to see Mai in that state. But he has to do something in order to exorcise Mina before the spirit do something to hurt Mai in any way.

But what could he possibly do?

"Mina… I'm here…"

Naru froze as soon as he heard those words. That voice was calling out for Mina. He was sure it was a man. Could it be that it belonged to Shiro?

Before he could even look around, he felt a cold, almost freezing sensation touched his shoulder. Shiro was just behind him, he was sure of it!

"I'll do what I can to convince Mina to let go of Mai," Shiro said. Naru didn't even bother to turn around to have a glimpse of Shiro's spirit. But weird enough, he wanted to trust him. The only problem was what Shiro could possibly do. Mai was just standing near the edge of the cliff and one wrong move could lead to her death.

Which, of course, Naru wouldn't allow to happen. But then…

"But I need a body," Shiro suddenly said. "Right now, I know that only a psychic could see me as I am."

Shiro has a point. But who could be that willing person to be possessed by a spirit just to settle all this? But before he could think of what to do, Minako looked at him. To be specific, behind him. The child's eyes widened but there was still sparks in them.

"Papa… is that you?" Minako uttered that—even though it was soft—was still heard by everyone. So the others all focused their attention behind him.

Naru saw Mai looked behind him, as well. Her eyes opened wide. He knew what it meant. For some reason, he wanted Mai to look at him the same way Mina looked at Shiro. Despite the shock evident in them, he could see the love—a love that had never faded even after death. It was one of the emotions Mina had kept all these years.

A love Naru knew was meant for Shiro alone.

Weird enough, he could feel his heart constricted at the sight of that emotion in Mai's eyes. Despite knowing that it wasn't really Mai, why could he still feel something… weird? He shoved that thought off of his mind for now. His attention must be focused on how to convince Mina to let Mai go.

"Shiro…" Mai whispered and then smiled even though she was starting to cry. She covered her mouth with both her hands and let out a sob. Despite that, Naru could see that she was happy. "It really is you."

Shiro smiled longingly at Mai. The spirit then started to float towards the girl. "Yeah, it's me. I'm sorry I didn't come to you sooner than I should've been."

Mai shook her head gently and faced the spirit. "It's okay. It doesn't matter now. As long as you're here now… As long as you came back to me and let me see you once more, it doesn't matter."

The spirit smiled sadly this time and raised his hand. But then he stopped midway upon realizing something. "But I can't touch you now like I used to."

"Shiro…"

"I wanted to feel you just like before. I wanted to hold you once again. But I don't think I could."

"Does that mean you have to use a body in order to do what you want? Just like how Mina used Mai," Takuya inquired. Shiro nodded once.

Silence filled the air for a few moments. And then Takuya spoke of words all of a sudden that surprised Naru and Lin.

"Then used my body," Takuya said seriously.

The spirit and Mai's faces have etches of hesitation when they looked at Takuya. Lin was just looking at them solemnly while Naru was… Well, emotionless. Or at least that was what he wanted to project. But deep inside, he wanted to shout.

Reason? He wasn't sure—which was an illogical answer, he then thought. But let reason be damned. Would he actually allow someone innocent to be used as a spirit's puppet? But Takuya just agreed to it and Shiro would use him in order to fulfill his wish to hold Mina again…

…but in reality, Takuya was going to hold Mai!

And who knows what could possibly happen?

"But Takuya—"

"It's okay, Takako-neesan," Takuya abruptly talked that stopped Takako from continuing what she was supposed to say. "I know Shiro wouldn't let something happen to me. But this is the least I can do for him. I could feel until now just how much he loves Mina. His memories might have been erased for a long time but the love that's only meant for the woman more important than him remained in his heart. I wanted them to be completely happy in order for both of them to move on."

Well, Takuya does have a point there. But still, even though it was really Mina and Shiro who wanted to be with each other's arms, the fact that Takuya and Mai were strangers to each other were somehow bothering Naru. Unknown to Naru, Lin could actually see through that blank expression that the narcissist was projecting. In a way, Lin knew where this would lead them. And by the words that Naru had spoken, Lin wasn't surprised that he came up with that decision.

"I'll do it," Naru said seriously, despite the hints of coldness in his voice. Seriously, what came to his mind for him to say something like that? But he couldn't take it back now. He had already decided.

_Is he serious? Takuya willingly allowed himself to be possessed by me. But then all of a sudden, this guy would say he'd do it? Not unless… he doesn't want a stranger to hold the girl that Mina possessed other than him,_ Shiro thought. But the conclusion he came up with did make a lot more sense. He could see that Naru could definitely feel something towards Mai. Only Naru couldn't figure it out for himself right now. Naru must have been holding that feeling for so long—only that he wasn't aware of it. _If that's the case, then…_ Shiro floated towards Naru instead of Takuya.

The spirit looked at Naru intently before speaking. "Are you sure about your decision?"

The only answer that Shiro got from Naru was a nod. Naru's eyes were staring at him seriously. Shiro could see that—whatever the consequences—Naru would accept it in order for this predicament to end as discreetly as possible. That though alone amused him.

"Then…" Shiro started before floating towards Naru even closer. "We shall start." And just like that, the spirit finally entered Naru's body. When Naru opened his eyes, they were blank.

But soon after, they were starting to radiate emotions. Everyone there clearly knew that those emotions were from Shiro. Naru started walking towards Mai who was still standing near the edge of the cliff. After she saw what Shiro did, she moved towards Naru. And now they were close to each other. For a short while, the couple (**A/N: I'm mentioning Mina and Shiro here. As for Naru and Mai being a couple, well… that will take a long time before it happens. He he! ^_^**) stared at each other lovingly. Almost a year… That was how long they've been apart. It was natural for them to look at each other that way.

Takako smiled despite the tears starting to fall from her eyes. Takuya smiled, too and so did Lin. Minako was serious with hints of fear.

Unable to hold it much longer, Mai ran towards Naru and hugged him tightly. Naru hugged him back in return. They relished each other's warmth for about a minute or so. It was obvious that the couple missed each other so much. The intensity of the emotions they had for each other was too much for them to contain inside of them much longer.

"I can't believe I'll be able to hold you like this again," Naru whispered to Mai's ears. "I love you, Mina. So much. I've always loved you even though I suffered from amnesia. And I wanted to thank you for giving me Minako."

"I love you, too, Shiro," Mai replied emotionally. "I don't want Minako to suffer in that hell, that's why I entrusted her to Takako. My sister knew better than anyone just how much I love you. Minako's the proof that you had existed in my life. And I never regretted—not once—that I gave birth to Minako—our child. I watched over her in my spirit form ever since I died after giving birth to her. That way, I could give her the love that remained here in my heart that was meant for you." Mai was crying while saying those words. Naru only hugged her tighter in response.

Soon after, they pulled away and stared at each other. But before anyone could anticipate what was about to happen, Naru's head lowered towards Mai. Mai closed her eyes slowly. The others watched everything with eyes wide open when they saw what happened next.

Naru kissed Mai!

Even though they had a clear idea that Naru and Mai were possessed by the lovers Shiro and Mina respectively, it still came as a surprise to them. How could they have missed this? Shiro and Mina had been apart for so long. And Shiro wanted to hold and touch Mina for one last time before moving on.

_So I guess that's what Shiro meant. He wanted to feel Mina this way like he used to do before,_ Takuya thought when he finally understood Shiro's words before possessing Naru.

Naru continued to kiss Mai passionately without a care in the world. All that mattered to them was each other. He knew for sure that the feelings from that one passionate kiss would forever seal the love that Shiro and Mina had for each other in their hearts. It was a love that definitely surpassed the wall between life and death and defied the odds of love and destiny.

They have each other now and no one could keep them apart.

This time, it was forever.

After that kiss, Naru and Mai looked at each other—the couple's love was surely evident in their eyes.

"I'll be with you. And this time, it's forever. No one will keep us apart now," Mai said softly.

"We'll never let each other go this time. I can keep my promise now. We'll love each other till beyond eternity," Naru replied with a gentle smile on his face before embracing Mai again.

With all that finally settled, Shiro and Mina's spirits finally let go of the bodies that they possessed, causing Naru and Mai to lose consciousness.

"Naru!" Lin called out as he approached the black clad person holding Mai's hand.

"Mai-san!" Minako and Takako both called out and then they approached Mai. At that time, the rest of SPR and some of the members of the Kawazumi family arrived at the scene. They were surprised to see both Mai and Naru unconscious.

Masako looked up and she saw two spirits slowly heading towards the sky—with hands intertwined and a thankful, relieved and peaceful smiled on their faces—as the couple looked at Mai and Naru.

"Thank you so much, Shibuya-san, Mai-san," the couple said in unison with smiles on their faces. And then they've disappeared.

When the medium revert her gaze to Naru and Mai, she smiled when she saw that the two were actually holding each other's hands tightly. It was like they didn't want to let each other go forever.

_Something must have happened,_ Masako thought as she saw Monk carried Mai and Lin carried Naru. The others decided to stay in order for Takako to fulfill Shiro's dying wish—and it was about his remains to be buried next to Mina's grave. Hopefully, after all these, things would turn out good for the entire Kawazumi family.

With that, the case was considered solved.

**.**

**.**

_**A few hours later…**_

Takuya remained standing in front of the bloodstained boulder where the fifth stanza of Mina's poem was etched. He smiled as he looked at the deeply-etched words on it. He was right, after all. Naru and Mai helped Shiro and Mina to be together for one final time.

"Looks like Mi-chan's going to anticipate a lot of things to happen between those two," Madoka said with a smile as she approached him. Apparently, only he knew that she was there. None of the SPR thought she would come.

Takuya faced Madoka and nodded as a reply to what she stated. "You're right. Not just her, but I guess all of us, too. By the way, you managed to have a copy of that scene?"

She nodded and showed him a picture already printed. It was a picture of Naru and Mai's memorable and passionate kissing scene. She handed it to him afterwards.

"But what do you think Mi-chan will do with that picture?" Madoka asked as she looked at it.

He sighed before placing the picture inside a folder. "Probably something that will make those two people realized their feelings for each other."

"Oh? Now that's definitely something to anticipate. How I wish it happens before I get married," Madoka said dreamily.

Takuya smiled. "Really? You're getting married?" he asked excitedly.

She nodded and smiled. "Yup. Lin proposed to me three days ago." And then she showed the engagement ring she was wearing. "But as of now, only Naru knew that."

"I guess a double or a triple wedding wouldn't hurt that much," Takuya commented. He and Madoka started walking away from that place.

"Probably a double wedding. Bou-san and Matsuzaki-san were already married three months ago."

"Then I guess we'll just have to wait for more progress to happen to them."

Madoka looked at him before she gave out an agreeing sound. "You're right."

**.**

**.**

Upon arriving to SPR office, Naru immediately told Mai to bring him his tea. Mai, who had gotte used to her boss' demands, only rolled her eyes and muttered "tea-addict workaholic jerk" under her breath jokingly before doing what was told. The others—most likely the guys—helped unpack the equipment and other things from the van and after a few minutes, they all gathered in the office. Mai then served everyone their tea which had started to become everyone's favorite even before Naru came back from England.

"I'm just glad this case got solved, even though I don't know how it was solved," Ayako said before taking another sip.

"Now that you mention it—" Monk paused and faced Naru. "How did you solve it? You must have remembered at least something, even just a little. Lin won't talk even though we've asked him a lot of times during the entire trip."

But Naru didn't say a word. He just took a sip of his tea and looked at the file placed on his lap. That file held the answer to Monk's question regarding on how the case was solved—a case that was dubbed by Mai as "The Lost Lover's Words". Lin completed the information for him before he woke up a few hours after he fell unconscious. Mai woke up half an hour after him. But until now, he couldn't still believe that he allowed himself to do something like that while Mai was possessed.

Lin told him everything—from the part where Shiro finally possessed him until the reunited lover's souls had finally passed on. Lin also told him about the information regarding the Kawazumi family's reconciliation and repentance to their sins towards Shiro and Mina. Even the fact that the family finally learned the truth about Minako's true heritage were also told to him.

"Naru, what's wrong?" a familiar voice full of concern disrupted the flow of his thoughts. That familiar voice, apparently, caused his heartbeat to increase its tempo all of a sudden. When he looked up, he saw Mai looking at him with her eyes full of concern and worry. Something pricked his heart at that sight.

He just took another sip of his tea. "Nothing," he said nonchalantly. But still, those look in her eyes clenched his heart for some reasons.

Monk sighed, probably giving up. "I guess he won't say anything even if he knew the answer."

"But even if we didn't know how it was solved, it was for the best that Minako-chan won't have to live a life where she needed to hide her true identity as Mina's daughter anymore," Mai said with a smile.

"You're right. After all, Minako-chan has a right to be loved by her mother's family," Yusahara added.

Everyone agreed to what Mai said and they continued to enjoy their cups of tea. But Masako noticed that Mai wasn't drinking her tea and that she was unusually quiet—like Mai was in deep thoughts.

"Is there something wrong, Mai-san?" Masako asked as she put down her tea to the table.

Mai was startled upon hearing that. When she looked up, she noticed that the others were looking at her with concern—and that included Naru, as well. Reluctantly, she beamed a smile.

"I'm fine. There's nothing wrong," Mai answered and laughed weakly. But she knew the others won't buy that reason.

"Mai, you know you can't trick us with that kind of answer," Ayako asked seriously. This made Mai serious, too.

"I was just thinking," Mai started. " I know I did something for Mina and Shiro to reunite even after death had separated them. But whenever I try to remember, no images come out of my mind. It's like I had this feeling that there's something stuck at the back of my mind. Something important… But I can't figure out what no matter how I try to make myself remember it," she said seriously without facing the others.

_And then there's this weird feeling stuck on my lips. It's like there's a sensation that I haven't felt before. Nevertheless, I still like it. But what could it be?_ She added in her thoughts that only made her sigh. She secretly glanced at Naru who was busy drinking his tea while stoically reading something. It must be the file with regards to that case they just solved. _Does Naru know what happened? Did he follow me after I took off? I'm sure I've felt his hand held mine… but I guess it's just a dream. Though it would be great if he did hold my hand back then…_ Great! She was doing some wishful thinking again. As if Naru would actually do something like that consciously and wholeheartedly—which she doubted so much.

But then she chose to shrug it off in order not to let the others worry about her—again. They continued to enjoy drinking their tea while having conversations. It was surprising, though, to see Naru not doing anything with regards to it.

After that, the others have gone home, even Mai. Lin and Naru stayed in the office even though there was nothing left to do. Naru stood up from his seat and walked towards the window where he could see Mai walking happily along with the others. Upon seeing Mai's smile, his heart suddenly beat faster and louder, too. He couldn't believe that solving those lover's predicament would lead him to this. He couldn't believe that Mai would have this effect on him. How did it all end up like this, anyway?

He wouldn't deny the fact that what he felt for his brown-haired assistant had changed after he came back. He cared for her before (or at least that's what he thought) and he cared even more for her now. He sighed as he remembered something.

It would be a blatant lie if he told the others that he didn't remember anything from the incident. He remembered them clearly—as clear as crystal. Though he couldn't recall the words he spoke as Shiro, he remembered the love vividly expressed in Mai's eyes when she looked at him. And it was weird for him to wish that those love in her eyes was somehow meant for him—as Naru and not as Shiro. Of course, he also remembered the kiss that he and Mai had passionately shared.

He unconsciously touched his lips with his finger upon remembering that, along with Mai's smile. He never realized that this case would bring so much trouble to him. That was probably the real reason why he decided to let Shiro possess him instead of Takuya. He didn't want Takuya to kiss Mai like that—especially in front of him where he could see it clearly. He didn't want any other guy to kiss Mai aside from… him…

Wait a minute! What the hell was he thinking? Was his mind still working properly?

Maybe not. And it was all because of that one passionate kiss. All he did was to breath out a long sigh.

He could barely see Mai's figure from his office window. And yet, his heart was still beating loud and fast. How could one kiss turn everything upside-down? How was it possible that Mai has this so much effect on him? He has a lot of questions that he wanted to find answers as soon as possible. But there was one question that he wasn't sure if it would be answered sooner. A question he considered slightly foolish.

Would he be able to feel Mai's kiss like that once again?

To be honest, he really wanted to feel them again…

He wanted to… at least just once more…

**.**

**.**

**Who would have actually thought something like this would happen to Naru and Mai? Sorry if I have to end it here but I have to. Don't worry (I guess) since I'll be doing a sequel. It's the second installment of "To The One I Love" series that I've entitled "Please Remember". About the Mi-chan person that Madoka mentioned, she'll be appearing in that second installment. As of now, I'll leave her as a mystery. In the second book, though, she'll be one of the people who'll make Naru realize his true feelings for Mai. But certain events would unfold before he does. Wait for it, okay?**

**Leave a review after reading this. I really appreciate it if you could do that. **

**So until next story time, I hope you all do well. Ciao! ^_^**


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